Warm Seas
by Alabaster86
Summary: Heading back to the Fire Nation after the taking of Ba Sing Se, Zuko broods and Mai tries to help.


For winterdevils, a lovely young lady I know quite well, and like very much, who has a birthday later in November.

_**Warm Seas**_

_**Zuko**_

The wind was strong. It toyed with Zuko's long robes like a playful and exuberant child. His hair, loose and shaggy, blew about too. With hands on the massive ship's rail, he stared out into the night. The sea was a vast darkness, black waves that churned and frothed about the vessel, smashing into its prow.

Salt spray, a fine mist, dampened the prince's skin. The air was fresh and bracing and he breathed in huge, life-giving gulps. He had to admit that being back on a ship felt right. And he was heading home to reclaim his life, not away into the unknown. Things were good now. Weren't they? For someone who should be happy and smiling, he brooded a lot, sunk down deep into his own convoluted thoughts and worries.

Zuko frowned and wondered if perhaps home was the unknown now. It had been more than three years since he'd seen his father and his room, the palace and Capitol City. How much had altered? Would he really be welcomed by his father and by the Fire Nation's people? He was the burned and banished prince, weak and soft, the prince who wept at an Agni Kai and pleaded with his father. Was that all anyone would remember? Could they ever move beyond the stigma he carried, the horrible scar on his face?

He heard Mai's shoes on the metal deck and permitted himself a brief smile. He smelled her perfume next, a subtle blend of scents, vanilla the predominant one.

"Moping again? You should get the patent for it."

Zuko continued to stare, but the corners of his mouth quirked upward just a bit. "Are you complaining?"

"It's what I do."

"So, you should get the patent for it?" The prince sounded proud of his retort.

Mai rolled her eyes. "It's all in the delivery, Zuko. I have it you. You don't."

He laughed, a genuine laugh, and Mai's heart swelled. It was good to hear. Since reuniting with Zuko in Ba Sing Se, he had been immersed in misery and guilt and worry. Drawing him out of his sullen moods was almost impossible.

"We're nearly home." His voice held a mixture of terror and longing. "What if everything's completely different, Mai? What if….."

She placed a hand on his arm, long, pale fingers playing with the fine silk of his sleeve. "Don't worry so much. It won't change anything. And," she hesitated briefly, "and I'll be there with you." Tilting her head up, Mai placed a soft kiss on his cheek. The warmth of his body, even in the cool breeze, was intoxicating. She wanted to bury herself inside his skin.

Zuko turned to face her, gratitude, relief and something else in his eyes. Dipping down, he kissed her lips, shyly, delicately, like the wings of a butterfly caressing fragile petals. "Th, thank you, Mai." He needed someone in his corner, someone he could trust. Aside from Mai, he was alone now. Iroh was shackled, in some tiny room below deck, and Capitol City prison awaited him.

Fresh shame and anger traversed the prince's body. He returned his hands to the rail and gripped it tightly, his pale skin growing even paler. He was going home but everything was so wrong.

"Relax." Mai put one small hand on top of Zuko's. "Are you going to stand here all night? Or are you coming to bed?"

"The sea is growing warmer. I can feel it." It was as though the ship had crossed some invisible barrier that marked the beginning of the tropical sea, the sea that lapped at the black, volcanic sands of his home.

Mai leaned over the rail and breathed in the moist warmth. "You're right. But I didn't ask about the sea. I asked if you were coming to bed." She nudged him playfully.

"Give me a minute, okay?"

"Fine, feel free to mope." She gave him one last look before walking back across the deck, the sound of her footsteps growing fainter and fainter.

"Home," Zuko mouthed. He turned and caught sight of Mai's head disappearing down the stairs. "Mai."

The two were interchangeable.

~~~~0000~~~~

_**Mai**_

The cabin was snug and warm and if it were not for the occasional dip of the huge steel structure, Mai wouldn't know she was at sea. She sighed and put down her book. Thoughts of Zuko kept creeping into her mind, like some stealthy thief. Mai was excited to be with him again, not that she expressed that excitement with anything more than a wry smile here or a raspy chuckle there. But she felt it nonetheless and Zuko, he knew how much she wanted to be with him; they'd always been able to read each other, communicate without the use of all those extraneous words that cluttered the conversations of everyone else.

Despite three years apart and a few awkward moments, their relationship blossomed once more. It was like a tree, dormant over the winter, but coming to life again once the spring put warm, nurturing hands on branches and roots. Mai couldn't count the number of times she had despaired of ever seeing Zuko again. She was a realist, a cynic. Yet, when it came to Zuko, hope nudged its way back into her heart and mind. Mai just couldn't give up on him or them or what could be.

Standing up, she stretched and contemplated going above, into the cool of the night. Zuko spent a lot of his time above deck, staring and then staring some more. The prince had always been one to over think just about everything. He fretted and worried and then worried some more. In this case, returning home after three years in exile, back to a father who burned him, Mai understood the worry a bit. But he overdid it.

She left her cabin, shoes click clicking on the metal floors, and headed for the stairs. A crew member gave her a nod. As she emerged, the wind lifted thick black bangs from her forehead before allowing them to rest neatly against pale skin once more.

As Mai had anticipated, Zuko stood on the deck, gazing off into the gloom. She could tell from there that he was deep in thought. Part of her didn't want to bother him. But wallowing in the same misery day after day after day could not be good. Yeah, it was time to shake him up for a few minutes.

As she approached Zuko, Mai let her eyes roam over his body. Under his cloak and robes, he was slender and well muscled. Mai blushed a bit as she remembered watching him train, dual swords slashing the air, gouts of fire emerging from fists and feet. When he trained, the prince's self consciousness vanished like so much smoke in a strong wind. He was easy in his skin and his movements were graceful and effortless.

The breeze moved his shaggy brown hair about, short now, compared to when he was a child. Mai liked the new style. She liked tugging it with her fingers. His face was not a child's anymore either. It was all angles now and so handsome it made her ache. The scar didn't bother her. She'd been expecting it, had seen Zuko's wanted poster. Yes, it was garish and huge and ugly. But somehow it suited Zuko, marked him as a man of the world, someone who had suffered. It broke up the perfection of those royal features, painted him more human and relatable.

Her heartbeat picked up as she got close. "Moping again? You should get the patent for it." The remark disguised her fluster.

He smiled, not much of one, just a quirk of those beautiful lips. But the sight of it made her happy unlike anything else.

~~~~0000~~~~

A/N: I thought I would try something from the perspective of Mai and Zuko each.


End file.
